Community

Being a bi parent is a bit like having a super power. A super power that you really don’t want and which gives you the ability to feel both highly conspicuous and completely invisible. An impostor in Parentland. It feels isolating, but I am certain I am around other queer people on a daily basis who feel just as closeted as I do by the culture that surrounds parenting infants.

I think an identity shift when becoming a parent is quite common, but my sexuality is something that has stayed consistent. I have always been bi, even before I knew that that was what I should call myself. This is not the same for everyone, and that’s perfectly valid too. My sexuality would still matter even if I only started identifying as bi since becoming a parent, or last week, or just yesterday.

We at Biscuitare constantly surprised how many people simply don’t know that a vibrant and active bisexual community exists in the UK. In the digital age it’s much easier than ever before to connect with people just like you, but what did people do before Google? We asked Marcus Morgan of the Bisexual Index to tell us how he found a community he could call home.

The story of how I came to find the UK bisexual community is one I tell often – if you’ve heard it before I apologise – but it’s a useful example of the subtle, or perhaps not so subtle, biphobia we encounter. Of the way we are delegitimised with the kindest intentions.

I was 21 years old. I worked in a high street insurance brokers on the outskirts of London. I had keys to lock up the shop so I waited… Continue reading →

Bisexual Mental Health Month (BMHM) may feel long over, but that doesn’t mean you need to wait another year to discuss the sweeping mental health issues facing the bi+ community, or to feel guilt-free about focusing on your own mental health troubles. Here are a few things bi+ people and our allies can do to help safeguard the mental health of the bi+ community.

BMHM is an American campaign that runs throughout March to raise awareness of the mental health issues facing the bisexual community. Due to its online presence, it’s beginning to become internationally observed. But mental health doesn’t isn’t just an issue once a year. Here’s how you can look after yours, and others, all year round.

Find bi+ friendly support

Unfortunately, many bisexual people have difficulty getting support for their mental health issues, despite having some of the worse mental health stats in the LGBT+ community.… Continue reading →

Here at Biscuit we’re kicking off the new year by asking what the British bisexual community wants in 2017, not just from the wider world, but from itself.

With that in mind, we asked working class BiCon attendees to tell us what they want they want to see from their communities . Here’s what they said.

There’s no denying that working class bisexuals in the British bi community are a hidden minority. We’re not easy to spot, mainly because so few of us look like traditional working class stereotypes, but that doesn’t mean we’re not there. And when you’re invisible, as bi people know all too well, it’s easy for the prevalent group to assume you’re not there at all.

But it’s really shouldn’t take much for BiCon and the communities it hosts to grow their awareness of working class bis. Here’s what we need.

The bisexual pride flag was today raised over a London council building for the first time.

Nadia Shah, who was appointed Mayor of Camden in May 2016, hoisted the flag in a small ceremony on the roof of Camden Town Hall at 1oam today. The ceremony was attended by members of the Bisexual Index and Camden LGBT Forum as well as local activists and civic staff.

Mayor Nadia Shah addresses the crowd

The flag has been flown at Council buildings in Brighton and Hove since 2012, but other councils have been reluctant to follow suit. This year, just five further councils (including Camden) – out of more than 410 – have chosen to follow suit.

The Bisexual Index told Biscuit, “a lot of councils have told us that they fly the rainbow flag for gay pride, and that we’re included in that. But bisexuals… Continue reading →

Bisexuals face many problems, including higher than average rates of interpersonal violence (IPV) and homelessness, but at top of that list is mental health. In a Biscuit poll in February 88% of respondents reported having had mental health problems at some point, with 37% reporting saying that theirs were severe.

But this is only just scratching the surface, as a 2010 study conducted by the San Francisco Human Rights Commission found bisexuals to be around six times more likely to have mental health problems than heterosexuals. The study also incorporated data from a 2002 study published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, which reported that rates of mental health issues amongst bisexual people were significantly higher than those amongst lesbians and gay men.

My partners and I constantly argue over whether our mental health is a function of our bisexuality, vice versa, or unrelated. – Phil

From the erasure of bisexual participation in the early Pride movement, to incidences of biphobia at Pride events today, the bisexual community has had an uneasy relationship with Pride. But when we focus on the worst Pride can be, we can forget about the best. Here Clara from Retrogreat.com reminds us just how important it can be.

I’m 9 years old. Some friends and I play “Mummies and Daddies”. It turns into a campaign at school of calling me a dyke and a lesbian. I don’t understand – I have crushes on both men and women, but assume puberty will establish a preference.

I’m 17 years old. One night at a classmate’s house, she strokes my waist, she feels different to the lone boy I’ve kissed so far. Her boyfriend watches from a chair. After a while, she leaps away without warning, begins to cry and… Continue reading →

The bisexual community thrives because of its volunteers. Some are highly visible – those who run events like last weekend’s highly successful EuroBiCon and the heads of organisations like BCN, BiUK and the Bisexual Index, others work behind the scenes, doing accounts, designing posters and collecting tea money. Biscuit fave Cat returns to tell us what the draw is, and how you can get involved.

I’ve done quite a bit of volunteering work in the UK bi community over the years. I work full time and have children and, as a result, have limited free time – so why do I want to spend it doing more work when I could be relaxing?

Putting something back

I’ve been involved with the UK bi community for 10 years now, since I attended my first BiCon in 2003. Although I had other friends who were… Continue reading →

Let’s face it, if you’re bi it can be pretty tough going living in a world where heterosexuality is the norm. Most of the time your sexuality is completely erased and you’re assumed to be gay or straight depending on the gender of your current partner. When you’re not being erased you find yourself being othered for not fitting neatly into one of the gay or straight boxes. Having a space where bisexuality is the norm is important to give one a feeling of validity and belonging.

But what if there are no bi majority spaces that you can access? In the UK the main event in the bisexual calendar is BiCon, but this only happens once a year (and, as it happens, I can’t make it this year). There are BiFests happening throughout the year and regular bisexual meet up groups, but all of these are… Continue reading →

Pansexuality may be as old as the hills, but the pansexual movement is still young, and that means that it’s still a little mysterious to outsiders. We’re natural allies, and we’re nosy, too, so we caught up with advocate Elle Long to get the skinny on what’s happening in pan activism right now.

Hi Elle! First of all, tell us a little bit about who you are and what you do. How long have you been involved in pansexual activism and advocacy? What sort of things do you get up to as an advocate?

I am a junior at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, majoring in Political Science and Law, minoring in Ethnic Studies. I’m involved with the Speech and Debate team for the school but that’s about as sporty as I get!
My main focus in advocacy for pansexuality has been education and it started when I came… Continue reading →